The French government's public utterances during the coronavirus crisis have cruelly exposed its shortcomings, its method of thinking and the extent to which it is out of touch with events on the ground. There have been contradictory instructions, a slowness to express gratitude to those tackling the crisis on the front line, and great emphasis on the country being “at war”. Inside the government, writes Mediapart political journalist Ellen Salvi, some are worried about the image the executive is giving of itself during the crisis.
They still do not get it. After twelve days of lockdown, and though the peak of the epidemic has still not arrived, the French government has been churning out statements and continuing to spout off in all directions, out of step with what is happening on the ground. While the majority of government ministers and advisors defend the government's actions and decisions, others are privately starting to get worried about the image the executive is portraying of itself during its handling of the Covid-19 coronavirus crisis.
